The NC Dinos’ nine-game stretch is getting long. They have just one win in nine games in August.
NC lost 0-2 in the first game of a three-game midweek series against SSG Landers of the 2024 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League at NC Park in Changwon on August 13. The loss snapped the team’s six-game losing streak. Their season record now stands at 49 wins, 2 draws, and 57 losses.
SSG, on the other hand, has won two straight. Their season record is 55 wins, 1 draw, and 55 losses.
NC desperate to break the losing streak vs. SSG looking for a 5-game winning streak
NC is in desperate need of a win. They have lost five in a row after winning 49 games last season. They are also slipping further and further away from the postseason race.
The home team, NC, started the game with Park Min-woo (designated hitter), Seo Ho-cheol (second baseman), Matt Davidson (first baseman), Kim Hwi-jip (third baseman), Cheon Jae-hwan (left fielder), Kim Sung-wook (center fielder), Park Si-won (right fielder), Kim Hyung-joon (catcher), Kim Joo-won (shortstop), and starting pitcher Lee Jae-hak (3-6 with a 5.56 ERA in 14 games and 68 innings this year). Kim Hui-jip batted in the top four for the first time in his NC uniform, while Lee Jae-hak made his first start of the season against SSG.
SSG, on the other hand, was looking to improve its record to 5-0. Their season record before the game was 54 wins, 1 draw, and 55 losses. The lineup for the game was Choi Ji-hoon (center field), Choo Shin-soo (designated hitter), Choi Jeong (third base), Guillermo Heredia (left field), Han Yoo-seom (right field), Park Sung-sung (shortstop), Jung Jun-jae (second base), Lee Ji-young (catcher), Jeon Jeonsan (first base), and starting pitcher Drew Anderson (8-1-1 with a 3.11 ERA in 15 games and 72⅓ innings pitched this year). Anderson has yet to have a good NC game. In two games (one start), he has allowed four runs in 5⅔ innings.
Lee Jae-hak vs. Anderson…a tense pitching battle
NC starter Lee Jae-hak and SSG starter Anderson heated up NC Park.
Lee Jae-hak got off to a good start. He overwhelmed the SSG bats with back-to-back strikeouts in the first through third innings. The first run came in the top of the fourth inning. The lead was briefly lost. After a leadoff double by Choi Ji-hoon, Choo Shin-soo laid down a sacrifice bunt to put runners on first and third. He struck out Choi Jung on a swinging strike, but gave up an RBI single to Heredia to make it 1-0.
In the top of the fifth, Choi gave up a leadoff double to Jung Jun-jae. After getting Lee Ji-young to ground out to the third baseman, Jeon gave up a single to Jeon Eui-san to put runners on first and third. Four pitches in a row on an 0-2 count hurt. But he kept the fire from spreading. Choi Ji-hoon grounded out to shortstop to end the inning.
After Lee Jae-hak struck out the side in the top of the sixth, he got Han Yoo-seom to fly out to shortstop with the bases loaded in the top of the seventh before giving up a single to Park Sung-hwan. Taking over the baton, Ryu Jin-wook retired Jung Joon-jae (sacrifice bunt) and Lee Ji-young (catcher’s strike not out) to clear the bases for Lee Jae-hak.
SSG Anderson, on the other hand, had a shaky outing overall. He found himself in trouble often, but was able to retire the next batter he faced to keep the game scoreless. In the bottom of the first inning, Anderson gave up a hit and two walks to load the 안전놀이터 bases. It was a precarious situation, but he got Jae-Hwan Lee (swinging strikeout) and Sung-Wook Kim (grounder to second base) to end the inning. In the bottom of the inning, Seo gave up a single to left field with runners on first and second, but Heredia made a clothesline throw to left field to throw out Kim Hyung-joon at home to keep the tying run from scoring.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, I lost my pace near the end of the inning. After giving up a single to Davidson, I gave up back-to-back walks to Kim Hwijip and Jae-Hwan Jae. Fortunately, I got Kim Sung-wook to fly out to center field with the bases loaded to end the fifth inning. Anderson returned to the mound in the bottom of the sixth, but gave up a single to Kim Joo-won two batters later. Reliever Noh Kyung-eun retired the next two batters, leaving Anderson with a scoreless inning.
Two missed chances…and a knee to the gut for NC
NC will be disappointed with their two missed opportunities.
On this day, NC went silent on two opportunities to score runs and continued to struggle. In the bottom of the first inning, Anderson’s pitch faltered and the bases were loaded. At the plate was Shin Jae-hwan, who was batting .423 (11-for-26) in August. However, he struck out swinging. The next batter, Kim Sung-wook, was also left stranded as he hit a grounder to the second baseman.
Then, two batters later in the bottom of the fifth, another golden opportunity presented itself. Anderson struggled mightily. He drew three of the four pitches he faced to load the bases, but was unable to score as Kim Sung-wook struck out again in the bottom of the inning.
NC didn’t have much of a chance after that. It collapsed in the top of the ninth inning. With two outs in the top of the ninth, Lim Jung-ho gave up a double to Lee Ji-young and then a single to Oh Tae-gon for a 0-2 KO punch.
Two batters later in the bottom of the ninth, Seo Ho-cheol walked, but Davidson flied out to right field to end the game.
NC vs SSG: Who did well?
On the mound for NC, Lee Jae-hak pitched 6⅓ innings, allowing one run on three hits with seven strikeouts and two walks. He was outstanding with his quality starts (6 starts with 3 earned runs or less), but the offense struggled and he suffered his seventh loss of the season (3-3). He was followed by Ryu Jin-wook (1 1/3 scoreless innings) and Lim Jung-ho (1 1/3 scoreless innings).
At the plate, Seo Ho-cheol and Kim Joo-won had multi-hit games, but it wasn’t enough to prevent the team from losing.
SSG, on the other hand, improved to 9-1 on the season with Anderson pitching 5⅔ innings of five-hit, eight-strikeout, five-walk ball with no runs allowed. In the bullpen, Noh Kyung-eun (⅓ scoreless innings/hold), Moon Seung-won (1⅓ scoreless innings/hold), Seo Jin-yong (⅔ scoreless innings/hold), and Cho Byung-heon (1 scoreless inning/save) took the mound.
At the plate, Eredia and Oh Tae-gon, who played center field, both had RBI singles to help the team win.